Ice gripper



Feb. 28, 1961 2,972,823

A. R. BAILEY ICE GRIPPER Filed Feb. 12, 1960 //l/EA/To/e: ALBERT R. BAILEY n TTo RNEYJ v. Vw w United States Patent 2,972,823 ICE GRIPPER Albert R. Bailey, 5560 Pershing Ave., St. Louis, Mo. Filed Feb. 12, 1960, ser. No. 8,335

3 Claims. (Cl. 36-62) This invention relates to improvements in ice gppers and in particular is concerned with an ice gripper attachment for shoes that through a special rigid hook arrangement an elastic band can be hooked onto the bottom of shoes in a very simple manner. ,t

i Ice grippers and other anti-skid shoe attachments have been used in the past for the purpose ofY preventing skid-V Yding upon ice or other slippery surfaces. These attachments, although successful, for their stated purpose initially, have been largely objectionableV because of a tendency to work out of adjustment upon the shoe. Such attachments have also been objectionable because of the length of time required to fasten them to the shoe. 'An llustration of such a gripper is shown in Smith Patent No. 2,401,891, which uses a single securing strap fitting under a depressed central portion of the ice creeper. Such an ice gripper is difficult to secure and once secured to the shoe, is prone to slippage.

By means of the instant invention, there has been provided an ice gripper which has a rigid hook that serves to secure an elastic band. The elastic band can be tted over the shoe and then hooked in underneath the rigid hook in a matter of seconds. The band, by virtue of its looped construction hastwo areas' of friction or engagement onrthe top surface of the shoe, and serves to hold the gripper in place.

The ice gripper canbe made very simplyfrom a shaped steel plate and can be adjusted in a matter of seconds. The readily securable features of the plate tend to dispel the natural resistance of many people to the use of the ice gripper and thereby serves an added advantage in having people use the gripper that otherwise would not. The gripper is also extremelyl simple to secure andl can be used without any requirement of manual dexterity at all.

It is accordingly an object of this invention to provide an ice gripper attachment whichrvcan be made of plate material having a rigid hook at one side to which an elastic loop can be hooked over the top of a shoe.

It is another object of this invention 'to providean ice gripper attachment made of steel platehaving a vertical hook at one side'with an adjustable loop extending `from the .other side that can` bev4 hooked v`over the shoe and underneath the hook to hold 'the gripper to the shoeiin binding relation.

Yet a further object of this invention is to provide an ice gripper attachment for shoes having a hook to which an elastic loop can be secured, in which the loop may be adjusted by moving it through securing slots in the steel plate.

Still a further object of this invention is to provide an ice gripper attachment that can be made simply and economically from a single piece of shaped steel plate with a strong elastic band, which can be simply and expeditiously used by the wearer. Further objects of this invention will appear in the detailed description which follows and will be further apparent to those skilled in the art.

For the purpose of illustration, there is shown in the'` accompanying drawing a preferred embodiment of this invention. Itis to be understood that this drawing is for the purpose of example only and that the invention is not limited thereto.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 isa top plan view of the ice gripper;

Figure 2 is a view in front elevation of the ice gripperv at Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a bottom plan view'of the ice gripper of Figure l; l j. Figure 4 is an enlarged view in section taken on `the line 4-4 of Figure 1 showing the manner of adjustably securing the end of the Irubber band to the ice gripper; and

Figure 5 is a pictorial view of the ice gripper attached Y to the left shoe of a wearer.

As shown in the drawings, -the ice gripper comprises an ice gripper plate generally indicated by the reference number 10 and an elasticretaining band 12. The plate is made of flat steel plate or other rigid material of coni structionY which cari be appropriately shaped. As shown in Figure l, the ice gripper plate ,10 has a flat base portion 14 having band securing extensions 16 and 20 at opposite sides.

The ice grippingfeature of the ice gripper plate is provided by four triangular'shapedteeth elements 22, which are struck out from around the sides of the plate. Thesev teeth, by virtue of their arrangement, provide both stability and va means for gripping. any slippery surface, such as ice, to give a good anchoring engagement.

A hook memberv 24 is provided at one side between the band retaining extensions of the ice gripper plate. The hook member 24 is formed of a substantially vertical shank portion 26 and a terminal hook member 2.8.y

It will be noted that the shank slants upwardly and vertically away from the ice gripper vplate whichy provides' a wedging action when the band is Ahooked around it to iirmly engage the shoe with the ice gripper plate. y

The previously mentioned band retaining extensions 16 and 20 are alike in every detail and only the element 16y need be described. This element comprises an extension of the base plate 14.l The extension has three slots provided in it, namely slots 30, 32 and 34. Each of these slots has a length just slightly greater than thewidth ofy the band 12 as is shown inFigurevl and a width just slightly greater than the thickness of the band. Thus by threading lthe terminal end of the band through these" slots, las shown in Figure 4, the band may be frictionally engagedand locked inthe band retaining extensions. It

willbe obvious thatthe adjustment of length of the band. may be simply eifected by yproperly manipulatingV the endv Y of the band and threading theband through the slots 30, 32 and 34, tov either lengthen or lshorten-the loop.

i The. icem gripper plate-isfadapted to be'attachedQto 'a shoe in al matter "ofrlsecondvSQI-a The attachment can be; effected verysim'ply"`and "expeditiolisly'withilt. 4any 1.corri-l plicated fastening movements required. This, of' ciiis',"

Figure 5 where an ice gripper plate is shown attached to a left shoe of the user. It will be noted that the securing hook 24 is placed at the left edge of the shoe sole with the plate being placed at the bottom of a shoe, with one edge of the plate abutting against a heel 40 of the shoe, generally indicated in dotted lines by the numeral 42. In

Patented Feb. 28, 1961 3. the position shown in Figure the band 12 will initially extend to the right side of a shoe and then is simply stretched over the shoe and hooked under the terminal hook member 28', inthe manner shown. The' whole operation takes place in only a matter of seconds and; requires no complicated manipulation and should be4 completely self-evident.

It will be noted that in the attachmentofA the ice gripper plate to the shoe, asvshown in Figure 5, that there are, in effect, two strands' formed by the band 12. These strands- 44 and 46' hug theA shoe tightly under elastic tension and, because of their separation, very elcectively` In' addition because of the separation of the strands 44 and46ther` bind the plate to the bottom of the shoe.

is carried out in the manner previously described for the left hand shoe.

In use, the ice gripper works actually as a two prong gripper that grips the ice during the rst stroke of a natural walking motion of the foot. The two rear prongs act mainly for reversible purposes to enable the gripper to beused as right or left shoe grippers. The width of the gripper from front to rear is for the proper positioning-and holding between the heel and point of contact.

In operation the strap or band being doubled by its engagement with the hook and by its proper spacing through the-strands 44 and 46 as shown in Figure 5, acts not only as a fastener to the connecting hook, but also ts the top of the shoe quite comfortably and prevents any uncomfortable cutting into the top surface of the foot; Additionally, the Strap is prevented from rolling down out of place and keeps the gripper in position under the foot as it ts at the narrowest part of the shoe archand, as a result, the gripper cannot move forward. The two teeth at the front normally engage the slippery surface to a much greater extent than the rear teeth because of the slanting construction of the shoe between the ball of the foot and the heel and the archarea. As a result, the ice gripper has a strainless pivoting action and cannot move backwards as the width of the plate is suiciently wide to bear against the heel of the shoe which makes a natural stop for the gripper plate.

When used on ladies shoes the ice gripper plate must naturally be smaller, and due to the extreme variation of shoe heels and styles, it can be used quite satisfactorily under the ball of the foot. Thus the strap design allows the gripper to be itted on each side of the widest part of a ladys'- shoe thus keeping it in proper place and claims appended hereto.

Thus, the hook portion is placed at` the rightside of the sole ofthe shoe and the attachment` Such changes and modifications are within thev scope and teaching of this invention as defined by the` 4 What is claimed is: 1. An anti-slip device for attachment to the bottom of a shoe which comprises a rigid, flat plate having gripping elements on its bottom surface, a rigid hook extending vertically from one side of the plate, an elastic band anchored at its ends to said plate and forming a loop extending from an oppositeside Aof the plate, said looped band being adapted to be stretchedover the shoe to engage said hook at a medial" portion of the loop and thereby deiine two separatedn elastic strands extending overthe shoe from. one side Vof the plate tothe other and retain the plate on the' bottomof the shoe, and means for adjusting the length' of` saidflooped band,said means comprising a series of slots at one side lof the plate through which the end of the band is threaded, said slots being only slightly larger than the band whereby the band is locked in the slots when under tension .but may be threaded through the slots when tension isv released.

2. An anti-slip device for attachment to the bottom" of a shoe which comprises a rigid flat plate having' gripping elements on its bottom surface, a rigid hook extending vertically from one side of the plate and diverging away from said plate, the hook opening away from said plate and downwardly, an elastic band anchored at its ends to said plate and forming a loop extending from an opposite side of the plate, said looped band being adapted to be stretched over the shoe to engage' said hook at a medial portion of the loop and thereby deiine two separated elastic strands extending over the.'

shoe from one side of the plate to the other and retain the plate on the bottom of the shoe.

3. An anti-slip device for attachment to the bottom o'f' a shoe which comprises a rigid at plate having gripping".

stretched over the shoe to engage said hook at a medial portion of the loop and thereby define two separated elastic strands extending over the shoe from one side of the plate to the other and retain the plate on the bottom of the shoe,'and means for adjusting the length of said looped band, said means comprising a series of slotsV at one side of the plate through which the end of the band is threaded, said slots being only slightly larger than the band whereby the band is locked in the slots when under tension but may be threaded through the slots when tension is released.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,275,917 Herman Aug. 13, 1918` 1,570,791 Solarz Ian. Q6, 1926v 2,208,200 Sloan July 16, 1940 2,366,649 Priess Jan. 2, V1945- 2,401,891 SmithV June 11, 1946' 2,531,707 Stalford Nov. 28, 1950 

